Christy Clark once served as chairwoman of B.C. company that she has promoted since becoming premier

A leaked contract shows that B.C. Premier Christy Clark once served as chairwoman of a B.C. company she now touts on official government business, raising concerns over ethics and conflict of interest.

The 2007 document has surfaced one week after it was revealed that the Premier was a partner in her former husband’s lobbying firm, which formerly listed its office at her residence and boasted such clients as Enbridge and B.C. Rail.

According to Ms. Clark’s official bio and campaign materials, “She took a break from government in 2005 to spend more time with her family. She worked in the media during her time from government.”

It was during that time that she was engaged as chairwoman of a Vancouver-based investment firm’s plan to bring affluent international students to Canadian universities — capitalizing on her experience as education minister and deputy premier — with the firm now benefiting from her position as head of the B.C. government.

In the fall of 2007, Ms. Clark entered into a two-year agreement as chairwoman and board member of RCI Capital Group’s RCI Pacific Gateway Education Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of the investment firm.

RCI Capital Group has strong federal Conservative and B.C. Liberal ties – listing former federal Conservative cabinet ministers Stockwell Day as lead director and John Reynolds as non-executive chairman.

RCI boasts more than “$7-billion in transactions, primarily in natural resources” and also facilitated the arrival of wealthy immigrant investors to Canada under the now defunct federal Immigrant Investor Program.

Since becoming Premier, Ms. Clark has actively promoted RCI on official trade missions to Asia — recently signing a memorandum of understanding on behalf of the B.C. government in securing $1-billion in overseas investment in the B.C. forestry industry, for the export of wood products to fuel China’s energy demands. RCI was credited in facilitating the deal.

“The reason why we disclose these kind of interests is to ensure there’s openness. The Premier, who has never made this public in her biographies and many political statements, should have disclosed this to the public,” says Adrian Dix, the B.C. NDP Opposition leader.

“Clearly she played a significant role and continues to — this is not a person who is ordinarily shy about talking about herself — so it would’ve been appropriate for the public to know,” said Mr. Dix.

Ms. Clark also headlined an October 2013 press conference promoting a tech-based company whose chairman is RCI Capital Group’s founder and CEO, John Park.

Both RCI Capital Group and Mr. Park have donated to the B.C. Liberal Party and their candidates since 2011, according to Elections BC disclosures.

This is not a person who is ordinarily shy about talking about herself

The Premier initially denied any relationship with RCI Capital Group and Mr. Park. “I don’t have one,” she said before acknowledging that “He’s been on a couple of trade trips with us.” The B.C. Corporate registry in Victoria shows that Ms. Clark was registered as a director of the company alongside Mr. Park.

“It is unethical for a politician in public office to advance the interests of a private company in which they previously had ties to,” said Duff Conacher of Democracy Watch. “All ties to any private companies should be disclosed to the public — to ensure that a politician does not advance the interests of friends when in public office,” said Mr. Conacher.

The Premier did not elaborate until she was shown the contract on company letterhead bearing her signature. “Did I tell you I was never paid for any work and never did?” said Ms. Clark, before clarifying that she was a company director.

She had, however, signed the agreement outlining payment for joining the board of RCI Pacific Gateway Education Inc.

Under the terms of the contract, Ms. Clark would be paid a $20,000 bonus if UBC or UBC Okanagan and Okanagan College executed a plan to recruit affluent international students.

The agreement says an additional $10,000 bonus would be paid on any additional contractual agreements secured between the company and other Canadian public post-secondary institutions.

Ms. Clark would also receive $12,000 in annual remuneration and 4% of the annual operating revenues.

“When I worked in the private sector, I talked about doing some work with them — but I was never paid for any work with them,” said Ms. Clark.

The 2007 RCI contract is addressed to Ms. Clark at the business address for Burrard Communications — the lobbying firm owned by Ms. Clark’s ex-husband, Mark Marissen, where Ms. Clark was once listed as a partner. Mr. Marissen said she was briefly with the firm in 2006 and “her role with the firm was unpaid.”

Last week, Ms. Clark’s press secretary responded to leaked documents, published by the Vancouver Observer, showing her links to Burrard Communications and links between that firm and Enbridge, the energy giant in the process of seeking federal approval for the Northern Gateway pipeline project that will traverse the province. Sam Oliphant told reporters that Enbridge was no longer a client of Burrard by the time Ms. Clark had joined as a partner.

Federal lobbying records show Burrard listed its earlier office at Ms. Clark’s residential address during the period of time that she was an elected MLA and when the firm was engaged in lobbying for Enbridge Inc. on “issues related to their Gateway Project. This involved strategic communications advice and federal government relations.”

In 2007, while Ms. Clark was chairwoman of RCI Capital Group, the company was also a client of Burrard Communications – according to a leaked Confidential Government Relations Plan prepared for RCI.

Provincial records show that Mr. Marissen, along with lawyer Andrew Wilkinson, were lobbying the B.C. government on behalf of RCI Capital Group. Mr. Wilkinson was appointed by Ms. Clark to cabinet in 2013.